Women have long been exploited through pornographic material, such as videos, photos and literature, these materials, more-so now, than ever, portray women purely as sexual objects. The evolution of the business? popularity has done nothing but help fuel a false impression, subjugating women in modern day culture and society, yet still, banning pornography in the US would be nearly impossible, due to complex issues dealing with the first amendment and obscenity laws. With instances of discrimination based on sexual orientation, race or sex being in most cases illegal, the practice of pornography should most definitely not be acceptable or perpetuated, especially in a country like the US where this said industry defies everything of which our country is founded upon. This rise [in popularity] looks as if it is related, almost in a hand by hand parallel, with growth of sexual violence against women in America.
A real life example of the link between the onset of pornography in American culture and sexual crimes includes a survey done in 1978, in which 44% of the nine hundred and thirty women interviewed had fallen victim to rape or attempted rape at some point during their lives. Even though there have been numerous attempts to help sideline the ever growing popularity of domestic and sexual violence targeted at women, figures state that no change has been made for the better, in fact the opposite seems to be taking effect, with a recent study showing that during a survey of one hundred abused wives revealing that fifteen percent of these women reported that their abusive spouses ?seemed to experience sexual arousal from the violence?since the demand for sexual intercourse immediately followed the assault.?
An organizer of Women Against Pornography argues ?Pornography objectifies women by caricaturing and reducing them to a sum of their sexual parts and functions-devoid of sensibilities and intelligence.? She continues in saying ?Pornography is about power imbalances [and] using sex as a weapon to subjugate, or control, women.? Of the many ideals that pornography can perpetuate, some which rank among the most perverse in nature include the notion of using physical or emotional pain to women is accepted and glorified, women being forced to act or look passive and/or willing to partake in their own victimization and exploitation and that men are entitled to frequent, unconditional use of the female sex whenever they please. Coupled with the discrimination against women that pornography creates, exists a gruesome reality in which violence and physically forced exploitation of women actually occurs with great frequency.
When one acquires knowledge of the direct correlation between sexual violence and pornography, it can be logically asserted that the said relationship exists in a manner in which they feed off from each other in a symbiotic fashion. Numerous studies seem paint a vivid picture of this relationship, which still to this day is fed by the pornographic industry. Sociologist Pauline Bart intelligently noted ?I didn?t start out being against pornography, but if you?re a rape researcher, it becomes clear that there is a direct link. Violent pornography is like an advertisement for rape [and violence]?Men are not born thinking women enjoy rape and torture? They learn it from pornography.
Effect of pornography on Brain
"Because the human brain is the biological anchor of our psychological experience, it is helpful to understand how it operates." says William M. Struthers, associate professor of psychology at Wheaton College. "Knowing how it is wired together and where it is sensitive can help us understand why pornography affects people the way it does." Here are 7 things you should know about pornography affects the brain.
1. Sexually explicit material triggers mirror neurons in the male brain. These neurons, which are involved with the process for how to mimic a behavior, contain a motor system that correlates to the planning out of a behavior. In the case of pornography, this mirror neuron system triggers the arousal, which leads to sexual tension and a need for an outlet. "The unfortunate reality is that when he acts out (often by masturbating), this leads to hormonal and neurological consequences, which are designed to bind him to the object he is focusing on," says Struthers. "In God's plan, this would be his wife, but for many men it is an image on a screen. Pornography thus enslaves the viewer to an image, hijacking the biological response intended to bond a man to his wife and therefore inevitably loosening that bond."
2. In men, there are five primary chemicals involved in sexual arousal and response. The one that likely plays the most significant role in pornography addiction is dopamine. Dopamine plays a major role in the brain system that is responsible for reward-driven learning. Every type of reward that has been studied increases the level of dopamine transmission in the brain, and a variety of addictive drugs, including stimulants such as cocaine, amphetamine, and methamphetamine, act directly on the dopamine system. Dopamine surges when a person is exposed to novel stimuli, particularly if it is sexual, or when a stimuli is more arousing than anticipated. Because erotic imagery triggers more dopamine than sex with a familiar partner, exposure to pornography leads to "arousal addiction" and teaches the brain to prefer the image and become less satisfied with real-life sexual partners.
3. Why do men seek out a variety of new explicit sexual images rather than being satisfied with the same ones? The reason is attributed to the Coolidge effect, a phenomenon seen in mammalian species whereby males (and to a lesser extent females) exhibit renewed sexual interest if introduced to new receptive sexual partners, even after refusing sex from prior but still available sexual partners. This neurological mechanism is one of the primary reasons for the abundance and addictiveness of Internet pornography.
4. Over stimulation of the reward circuitry — such as occurs with repeated dopamine spikes related to viewing pornography—creates desensitization. As Gary Wilson explains, "When dopamine receptors drop after too much stimulation, the brain doesn't respond as much, and we feel less reward from pleasure. That drives us to search even harder for feelings of satisfaction—for example, by seeking out more extreme sexual stimuli, longer porn sessions, or more frequent porn viewing—thus further numbing the brain.
5. "The psychological, behavioral, and emotional habits that form our sexual character will be based on the decisions we make," says Struthers. "Whenever the sequence of arousal and response is activated, it forms a neurological memory that will influence future processing and response to sexual cues. As this pathway becomes activated and traveled, it becomes a preferred route—a mental journey—that is regularly trod. The consequences of this are far-reaching."
6. What makes Internet porn unique? Wilson identifies a number of reasons, including: (1) Internet porn offers extreme novelty; (2) Unlike food and drugs, there are almost no physical limitations to Internet porn consumption; (3) With Internet porn one can escalate both with more novel "partners" and by viewing new and unusual genres; (4) Unlike drugs and food, Internet porn doesn't eventually activate the brain's natural aversion system; and (5) The age users start watching porn. A teen's brain is at its peak of dopamine production and neuroplasticity, making it highly vulnerable to addiction and rewiring.
7. Men's exposure to sexually explicit material is correlated with social anxiety, depression, low motivation, erectile dysfunction, concentration problems, and negative self-perceptions in terms of physical appearance and sexual functioning.
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